Emma's choice
by Lorelei Candice Black
Summary: One-shot. Set on the right back home from Neverland. Emma has to make a choice between Hook and Neal. Which one is her True Love? Her soul mate? Give it a chance and review please. If you ask I might make it bigger later.


**_Emma's choice_**

_Once Upon a Time_

Set right after they all leave Neverland.

* * *

Emma had a choice to make and as she stood on the deck of the Jolly Roger, watching lost boys talking together, their eyes full of hope, she couldn't help but wish that things would be easier for her, that someone would simply hand her the right solution and assure her that everything would be okay, that whatever she chose, she wouldn't end up breaking someone's heart. Because even if she didn't chose him, she still cared.

"What's bothering you Emma?" Her father asked her softly.

She was so glad she had found them. They were the best parents she could have hoped for, even if they hadn't been together for long. She liked how easy it was for her father to get her. Sometimes even easier than her mother.

"I...It's nothing." She smiled.

There was no point in bothering him with her problems. After all, now they would be able to start on another child, on they wouldn't miss everything with. She would have to let them go soon.

"This nothing is staring at you. Both of them." Her mother told her with a smile.

Emma hadn't seen her mother standing here and smiled. They were smart and already knew what was going on with her. She shouldn't be surprised really. They were her parents after all.

"I...I don't know what to do... I love Neal, probably always will but I don't know if I'll be able to trust him ever again. I know he'll be there for me but I think he's just trying to make up for not believing me about Tamara... I don't think I'll ever be able to forgive him for leaving me like he did, for lying to me the way he did..." Emma tried to explain, watching Neal talking with Wendy.

"What about Hook? What are your feelings for him?" David asked her while Emma tried to ignore her mother's frown.

"I...I don't know... He's changed so much for me... He keeps on risking his life over and over and I can't help but feel something... I don't know... He makes me feel special..." Emma tried to explain, finding it hard to find her words.

"Emma, you have to follow your heart honey... You know that we can't choose for you...in the end, you're the only one that can make this choice. You could never disappoint us as long as you chose Love and follow your heart." Snow started to say.

"What if you had to do it though? If something happened and you could only save Hook or Neal, who would you choose?" Emma asked her parents.

"I... You can't ask us this honey... You have to make your decision by yourself..." Snow told her.

"You can be honest with me, Marie-Margaret, you know. I know that you want me to chose Neal..." Emma told her mother.

"All you have to know is that I won't object if you chose Hook, Emma. He's proven to be a great ally and he did save my life quite a few times. He's not such a bad guy I guess... I understand why you would chose him. He's handsome and he obviously loves you a great deal... But don't forget about Neal. He's Henry's father and you'll always have history with him. He, too, went to a great deal of trouble to come back to you." David added.

"Your father is right Emma, Neal went to a _lot_ of trouble to come and find you. I think he deserves a second chance. You need to give him the opportunity to make up for his past mistakes." Snow said.

"You two are just trying to push me towards Neal to keep me away from Hook." Emma smiled softly.

"You think I'm interested in Hook? Emma, I'm a married man!" David smiled, making his wife and daughter chuckle.

"Seriously though, do you love Hook as much as you love Neal?" Snow asked her.

"I... I don't know... I'm not even sure if I'm still in love with Neal or if I just love him like you love a first love, a memory. I think I just try to feel for Neal because I feel bad that he went through so much trouble to find us in Neverland..."

"There's something else you're not telling us... What is it Emma?" David asked her.

None of them noticed that Gold had walked closer to them and that from his spot, he could hear everything they said.

"I... When I got to town, I kind of ended up falling for Graham...and he died... Then I fell for August but he disappeared and only reappeared to get rebooted into a kid... Neal... I loved him and he left, sent me to jail...he came back only to disappear, making me think he was dead... Now he's back but...how long is it going to last? Maybe the price of my magic is that I'm meant to be alone... Maybe that's why they keep leaving me... Maybe it's only a matter of time before Hook leaves too or until something equally tragic happens to him. It might be safer for him if he stayed away from me...if I stay alone." Emma explained, tears in her eyes.

"I didn't know you felt this much for Graham honey..." Snow said as she hugged her.

"Allow me to ease your mind Deary. I didn't mean to eavesdrop but I can answer your questions. Your magic comes from your heart Miss Swan, your pure loving heart. It's pure magic. Magic has a price, yes, but the darker the magic the biggest the price. Graham dying was the doing of Regina's dark heart and had nothing to do with you. You're magic's price has already been paid: you spent 28 years away from your loved ones, leading a hard lonely life. Your magic won't take anyone else away from you." M. Gold intervened.

Nobody had noticed him standing close by. Emma and her parents looked at him and smiled at what he said.

"Thank you... You're not going to start hunting Hook down to avenge Neal if I don't choose your son. Will you?" She asked him worriedly.

"No, don't worry. I've made my peace with Hook and Neal is a big boy now, he can handle a broken heart if you don't chose him. My sole focus now is on rejoining Belle and finally building a future with her. Neal will be fine, I'm sure of it. If anything it might be an occasion for me to bond with him again." Gold replied kindly before he left them and went to speak with his son for a while.

"I just wish there was a way for me to know which way to go to make it easy... But it won't happen because if it's easy, then it's not meant to last and you have to fight to get what you want, to show that you deserve it...It's what every great Love story is about." Emma replied.

While her parents tried to find what to tell her without being too judgmental about Hook, Emma watched the two men that were presently trying to win her heart, each on a different side of the deck.

Neal had hurt her over and over again. When he finally came back he chose not to trust her, not to believe in her. She had been sad when he died and happy to learn he was alive but she didn't want to work so hard to be happy with him. She knew that it would take a lot of work, too much work. She would have to work really hard to be able to trust him again and it would only hurt them, maybe even Henry. Of course she would always love him, he was her first love and Henry's father but was he really the one for her? Her one true Love? Her happy ending? If she had to work so hard to make it pass all the pain and remaining hurt of his leaving, was it worth it? Wouldn't there just be more pain later?

She turned her head to watch Hook. He looked so peaceful as he navigated through the sky, bringing them all back home. He had risked his life to save her son and he had even saved her father when he hadn't been that nice to him to start with. Deep down, she knew that it had all been for her. His confession in the Echo Caves had touched her and she was grateful her mother interrupted her to make her own confession because at the time she didn't know what to tell him. He could have kept to himself the fact that Neal was alive. She knew that and like she told him it meant a lot that he had told them. He was proving more and more to be the right man for her... The man she wanted to see herself with.

"Emma, there's something else I need to tell you." David told her.

"What is it?" She asked, wondering why he suddenly looked so serious.

"When Hook took me to get the cure... We were climbing the cliff and he doesn't know that I heard it all but... Well, Hook got to the top before me and I was tired so I stopped a minute before I reached to top, just to breeze. That's when I heard it." he started.

"What did you hear David?" Snow asked him.

"Peter Pan joined Hook. He told Hook that he would let him leave this Island alone or with you if he helped him win this and killed me before the poison did. Pan offered Hook a way off this Island with you but Hook refused because he knew that you would never be able to leave Henry behind, that it wouldn't be right to try and influence you to do it. Pan had several arguments, including the one that you left Henry once and would be able to leave him again, that Hook would be there to pick up the pieces... He still refused, because it wouldn't be the best solution for you. " David explained briefly before he told them exactly what he had heard.

"So he could have left, he could have saved himself but he chose to stay and risk his life...for us?" Emma asked.

"Not for us Emma, for _you_. I think you know it deep down. Somehow, you made him want to be a man of honor. You helped him remember the man he was before he became a pirate and you made him want to be that man again." David explained.

"You're rooting for Hook aren't you?" Snow asked her husband.

"Actually, yes, I think I am."

"You think a pirate is best for our daughter?" She asked him.

"I think he's much more than a pirate and that he's only starting to prove it to us. I think he's perfect for Emma and I think she loves him too but refuses to admit it because of Neal's presence." David replied.

"You always seem to get me the best..." Emma sighted.

"So you're choosing him then?" Snow asked her daughter, trying to hide her doubts about the pirate.

"I... You remember when I told you that I kissed him?" Emma asked her mother.

"Yes, it was right after David told us that Hook saved his life and started accepting him, before we went to the Echo Caves." Snow nodded.

"I... The kiss was great, passionate and definitely the best kiss I've gotten in my life... He was about to say something. He said 'it was' and I cut him off, saying this was a one time thing. Then I asked him to wait a while before following me back to camp. I asked him to go get fire wood or something and he said '_As you wish_'." Emma said, looking pointedly at her mother.

"So?" David asked, not getting it.

"Like in _The Princess Bride_! I remember we watched it together before you broke the curse. This movie is great." Snow smiled, understanding.

"Exactly. The words and the tone... It sounded so much like when Westley says it in that movie and I instantly felt that it meant the same thing. It was an 'I love you' and I couldn't say anything yet but it made me smile... You know, the kind of smile that you can't fight, that it hurts to keep in..." Emma explained, making sure Neal and Hook were too far to hear.

"But do you love him or just the fact that he loves you?" David asked his daughter.

"I... I don't know... I know that what I feel for him is strong. I know when he's watching me, I know when he's getting closer to me... Every time he looks at me or smiles at me it warms my heart..." Emma confessed.

"Does Neal make you feel that way too?" Snow asked her daughter.

"No... He never did, not even when we first met." Emma replied, looking down.

"Then I think you have your answer. You have to be honest with Neal. Let him go and everything will be fine. I'm sure he'll understand." Snow advised.

"But what if it's the wrong choice? What if it doesn't work out?" Emma asked.

"Then you won't be alone to deal with it. If you're meant to be with someone, you find a way. If you chose Hook and you're really meant to be with Neal, then something will happen to let you know. You have a right to be happy Honey and if you feel in your heart that Hook is the right one, then you need to listen to yourself. You've proven to us over and over again that you have great instinct. Follow it." Snow suggested before she kissed Emma's forehead, followed by her husband before they went to reassure some of the youngest Lost Boys who seemed to be a bit scared.

Emma looked around the boat and saw Tinkerbell looking at her. She joined her.

"Hey Emma. Did you make a choice already?" Tinkerbell asked her.

"Does everyone know?" Emma exclaimed.

"I think so, yes. I don't think most of the Lost boys care thought. Everyone else s waiting for the big reveal." The fairy replied with a smile.

"I... I'm not sure... I wish there was a way for me to be sure." Emma sighted.

"There is. If I were still a fairy I could use this Pixy dust to help you. I did it before." Tink explained.

"You know, a lot of us here believe in you. I think the only one who doesn't is you. I'm sure that the minute you start believing in you once more you'll be able to be a fairy again. I think it's always been in you, it's never left you." Emma told the green fairy.

"I...maybe you're right... let's try shall we?" Tinkerbell said with a very enthusiastic smile.

"What? Now? What are you going to try to do?" Emma asked the fairy who opened the small vial full of Pixy dust and poured it on herself.

The dust flew all around Tinkerbell and suddenly, her wings appeared, showing that Emma had been right all along.

"I can't believe it! You were right, you did it! Now let's see which one of these handsome men is your True Love, Your soul mate." Tinkerbell said, letting her magic work.

Emma looked around and nobody notice the small green cloud leaving Tinkerbell's fingers to fly around the deck, directly toward Hook. She did notice that a very small portion of the green cloud had left the bigger one and was flying toward Neal.

"So quick? Does it mean it's Hook then? Why is some of it on Neal?" Emma asked her.

"Hook is your Soul Mate, your one perfect match. Neal is **a** true Love, but not as great as Hook. Hook is the one you'll be the happier with. I guess you could say that Neal is a second choice, a back up plan that you just happened to have met before you met Hook." The Green fairy explained gently.

"Thank Tink. I'm glad you're a fairy again. You deserve it." Emma smiled before she gave a quick hug to the good fairy who helped her and went to talk to Neal.

"Hey Emma. Henry just went back to get some sleep before we got home." He told her.

"I know, I saw him... Listen, Neal, we need to talk." She told him seriously.

"Never a good thing." he sighted before he followed her away from everyone else.

"I... I don't know how to say it... It's not easy and I'm sorry for the pain I'm going to give you but..." She was searching for her words, trying to find a good way to say it.

"You chose Hook didn't you?" Neal asked her.

"I'm sorry... I just... What I feel for him is much greater than what I feel for you... I still love you but...not as much as I love him...I... I'm sorry..." Emma had tears in her eyes.

"Don't worry about it, I knew it was a big shot but I had to try. Just know that I'm not going anywhere, I'll be there for you, whatever you need. I'll always be your friend." He told her gently.

"Thank you for taking it so well... I was afraid you'd take it the wrong way..."

"I know that I've been gone a while, it's not your fault. Now Hook better treat you right because the second he makes you unhappy I'll be there, okay?" Neal told her, making her smile.

They both hugged and talked for a couple more minutes before Emma walked away from him.

The entire time she had spoken to Neal she had felt Hook's eyes on her and she knew that from where he stood, it looked like she had chosen Neal. She needed to talk to him, to let him know that she had chosen him and not Neal.

She walked his way, climbing the few steps that separated them.

"How long until we get home, Captain?" She asked him.

"Shouldn't be too long now. A couple of hours maybe. Tired of the Jolly Roger already Swan?" He asked her.

"No, but I'm ready to sleep in my bed for once, and to eat a real meal at Granny's. A nice big burger sounds about right now. You'll join me right?" She asked him.

"In your bed? Well aren't you a quick worker Love. I knew I was un-resistible but I figured you'd want to wait a while..." He smirked, always flirting.

"At Granny's! You know I meant join me for a burger at Granny's!" She chuckled, playfully slapping him on the shoulder.

"Wouldn't you want to have that first burger with Henry and Neal, you know, as a family that's finally reunited?" He asked her and she knew that he wanted to know if she really had chosen Neal.

"I think it'll be easier for Neal to accept my choice if I stay away from him for a while." Emma replied.

"Your choice? You didn't choose him?" Hook seemed really surprised and almost let go of the ship before he caught himself and got it back on tracks.

"No. I'll always love him because he was my first love and he'll always be in my life because he's Henry's father and we're going to try and be friends but I just don't love him as much as... Well, I... I'd like to see where WE could go..." She explained, blushing a little.

"Really? ME? A pirate?" He hadn't been expecting this and she could see that he, too, was used to being last choice.

"Yes... You've proven lately that you're much more than a pirate, that you can be a man of honor... I like it." She smiled.

"What about your parents?" He asked her.

"My father doesn't mind, he's accepting you. It's going to be a bit harder for my mother but she's not openly against you... They just want me to be happy and to follow my heart..."

"And so do I... I will make you happy Swan, I promise you I'll do my best to make you happy." He told her.

"I know... Now, you didn't answer me. Will you be having a burger with me when we arrive?"

"I'd love to." He smiled.

"Now, why don't you show me how you keep that thing on track." She said, hoping to spend more time with him.

"That thing? Now Emma, if you want it to work between us, you can't insult the Jolly Roger, she's a very old lady but she's definitely not a thing." He teased her.

"She? Right... Well, Sorry. I'll try not to do it again." She smiled.

She held the bar with Hook standing safely behind her, his hook on the bar and his hand over hers, showing her what to do and guiding her when she noticed Henry speaking to Felix and giving him food.

"Something's wrong..." She said.

"What is it?" he asked her.

"Look at Henry. I know my son, he'd never go near someone who he knew for sure would try to hurt him. Henry would never go to Felix and, look at him. At first he glared at Henry and now he's smiling and accepting the food... Something's not right... The way Henry looks and reacts... He's different..." She explained.

"Well, he has been lock up with the lost boys for a while, maybe he needs some time to get back to being himself." Hook suggested gently, loving the fact that Emma was in his arms.

"But why is he with Felix when he could be with his grandparents, me, Regina, his father..." Emma insisted.

"Maybe he thinks that he can make him change sides... Maybe your son believes that Felix can still be saved..." Hook tried to reassure her.

"You might be right... I'll wait until tomorrow to get worried about him." She smiled, leaning back so that her back touched his chest.

.

The rest of the ride went well and Emma was glad that Neal had accepted her choice. She knew that he would manage to find love again too. If she had managed to find it, then so would he. Life wasn't cruel, especially to someone like Neal who had grown so much.

When they finally arrived, in Storybrook, Emma left Hook to join everyone else out of the boat. She never thought she would miss those people so much but they all had become her family and she was glad to know that they were all doing fine.

She watched as Neal and Gold went to hug Belle and turned to see Henry being pulled from arm to arm. She watched carefully and couldn't help but notice that he looked out of place, like he didn't quite know how to react to these people, like he didn't know them.

"Still can't shake the feeling that something's off about him?" Hook asked her after he finally got off the boat, after the lost boys.

"No... I can't... I think I'll talk to Regina about it now, before Henry goes to her." Emma said.

"Okay, you go, I'll make sure Henry stays away while you speak with her." He offered her.

Emma nodded in thanks and went to Regina. Snow had just told everyone how the woman had helped them a lot, basically informing the town that she wasn't evil anymore and Regina was trying to get over her surprise and shock.

"Regina, we need to talk." Emma told her.

"What did I do now?" Regina asked Emma with a sight.

"Nothing, don't worry. I just... You know how I get these feelings that are never wrong? Like I did with Tamara?" Emma asked her.

"Yes, I believe everyone will trust you from now on." Regina smiled.

"Well, I get it again... I have this feelings that something's wrong with Henry, that it's not just because of what he has been through... Something's wrong with him, I can just feel it." Emma explained.

"You think he's sick or something?" Regina asked, worried.

"I don't know... I've looked at him while we were on the boat... He didn't behave like Henry... I... I don't know how to explain it... I just wanted to warn you so you could keep your eyes open... Be careful for the next couple of days, see if he acts differently, if he seems to have forgotten something you know he was aware of..." Emma did her best to explain.

"I...Fine, I'll keep my eyes open... What... Look..." Regina said, pointing at Henry who was speaking nicely with Felix before he suddenly acted scared and called for them, reminding them that Felix was free and needed to be dealt with.

They all walked to the boy and David said he would go in jail. Regina reassured Henry who went to his father and she turned to Emma and said:

"I think you're right... We have to keep our eyes open...One minute he was acting like his best friend and the second he was afraid... It's not like him... He's hiding something from us." Regina nodded.

After that, everyone left to go celebrate at Granny's and Emma got Henry's old fairy tale book from Neal's room. She motioned for Regina to pay attention to Henry's reaction and when the boy pretended not to recognise the old book, they knew that something was up, especially when later, he asked to spend the night at Regina's after having looked through the trusty book. She sent him ahead and stayed behind a minute to speak with Emma:

"I'll try and see what he's hiding. I'll call you if I find anything or if something weird happens."

"I'll keep my cell phone with me." Emma nodded before Regina left through the door.

"So, how about that burger until we can find out what's wrong with your boy?" Hook told her, showing her a table where two plates were already waiting along with drinks.

"Ruby said you liked it best this way. Is it okay?" He told her when she smiled.

"Yes, it is. Thank you. It's going to be a nice change from what we had in Neverland." She told him.

"You're welcome. Now, did Regina agree with you about Henry's strange behavior?" He asked her.

"Yes, she said she'd keep an eye out... She'll call if anything happens." Emma informed him.

They talk a lot and when they left Granny's dinner, Emma had started calling him Killian.

"So, what to you say we go back to the Jolly Roger and get to know each other better in my quarters?" he asked her with an overly flirty smile.

"Now Killian, if we want this to work, you know that we need to take our time, take things slow." She warned him, understanding that he wasn't completely serious.

"As you wish." He replied, making her smile again.

"I like it when you smile that way." He commented.

"And I like the way you say that... As you wish... It says a lot." She told him, blushing a little.

"Well, I mean to say a lot with those words." He nodded.

"Have you ever heard of a pirate named Westley? or Dread Pirate Roberts? Or the man in Black? They're all the same man..." She asked him.

"Why? Is he my competition?" He asked her in return with a smile.

"Don't worry, your safe. He's just the character of a fairy tale here that I liked... I'll show you the movie some day... He always says '_as you wish_' to this girl he was in love with and you're kinda saying it the same way." She confessed, deciding that honesty was the best way to start it.

"Well, as a matter of fact I did meet him. The girl he loved was Buttercup and he was sure she would wait for him to come back. I don't know what happened to them." He explained.

"Buttercup, really?" Emma asked him.

"I know, it's a weird name. Why, what's her name here in your stories?" He asked her.

"The same...her name is Buttercup... Wow, who knew this fairy tale was also real... Maybe we'll meet them some day." She said.

"Maybe, now come on, I'll walk you back to your parent's place." he said as he offered her his arm in a very gentlemanly way.

"You sure know how to choose them Emma. First August and his motorcycle, now a handsome pirate. You have to give me your secret some day." Granny commented with an amused smile as she closed up the place.

Hook walked her back to the apartment she shared with her parents and before she went inside, he kissed her and it was even better than their first kiss in Neverland had been. It was the proof that Emma had been right to chose him. She was sure that if one of them had been a frog this kiss would have turned them back into a human. She couldn't help the wide smile on her face or the butterflies that were in her stomach. He made her happy and it had been a very long time since she'd felt this good.

"Good night Emma. I'll pick you up around noon tomorrow morning and we'll get some lunch at Granny's okay?" He asked her.

"I'd love to. Good Night Killian. Thank you, for everything." She told him before she opened the door.

"Always." he replied before he left, happy to know that he had finally gotten the girl by playing fair.

He loved her a thousand times more than he had loved Milah and it was new to him but he liked it. He liked who she made him.

.

Emma knew that it wasn't over.

It wasn't her real happy ending. Her happy ending would happen when Henry was himself again but she was happy now and it was the most important. She now believed in fairy tales, in Love and in her own powers. She had taken a leap of faith when she chose Hook and she knew that they would always be together, ready to overcome anything.

* * *

**I know it's short but it was in my head and I needed to get it out...**

**I hope you like it.**

**The next episode is so far that I might actually write more Once Upon a Time fictions to pass the time and to help with the long wait.**

**Don't forget to review please, it would be a great Christmas present for me.**

**Merry Christmas.**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


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